We have all seen those little arrows on plastic products with different numbers on them. Look at the bottom of any soft drink bottle or printed on plastic bags, these arrowed triangular codes are everywhere. But what do these recycling symbols actually mean?

In 1988, the American Society of Plastics Industry created these codes to represent the type of resin used in plastics. The presence of the symbol implies that the plastic item is recyclable, but it is actually intended to identify the plastic resin from which the item was made. Recyclability is ultimately determined by local collections and reprocessing facilities.

1: PET or PETE: Polyethylene Terephthalate
PET is commonly used for soft drink & water bottles, cooking oil bottles, peanut butter containers. It is the most widely recycled plastic.

2: HDPE: High-Density Polyethylene
Identifies milk, cider & water jugs, detergent, fabric softener & bleach bottles. HDPE is slightly waxy and semi-rigid. It does not crack. It floats in water.
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According to a recent press release, Dell is implementing a plan to modify their computer packaging in hopes of eliminating approximately 20 million pounds of packaging material over the next four years. Dell will integrate air-filled cushion technology and renewable materials including molded pulp cushions and 100 percent recycled High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) thermal-formed cushions –which will also result in a cost-savings of over $8 million.

Companies of all sizes are finding tremendous cost-savings by changing their packing and packaging options. Switching to small cartons and HDPE provides tremendous cost savings in terms of reduced transportation costs, smaller box sizes and simpler packaging and tooling costs. In addition, these changes reduce the consumption of raw materials, reduce landfills, encourage recycling –and saves money.

Reducing excessive packaging is one of the simplest steps any company can take in their campaign to “go green”. Tod Arbogast, director of Sustainable Business at Dell said, “We’re challenging every technology company to join us in implementing a global green packaging strategy”.

We present this challenge to all companies—not just those in the high-tech industry. To create greater awareness for this campaign, we would like to report on how other companies are reducing the amount of packaging they are using – and how they are quantifying the savings both in terms of monetary savings and in landfill waste and packaging reductions.

I welcome your comments on this blog so that I may follow up in future blog postings and articles.
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Robert Piller, experienced in green marketing campaigns and environmentally-friendly promotional products. His web site includes a comprehensive eco-friendly advertising specialty search, featuring over 250,000 eco promotional items in all price ranges, for anyone interested in going green. The site’s handy search tool helps you easily find recyclable, biodegradable, organic or recycled imprinted promotional items in your price range and time frame. View the Go Green website at EcoMarketingSolutions.com and comment on his blog postings at GreenSpotBlog.com.